McDaniel free to interpret lawNot running for governor has made Dustin McDaniel a better attorney general. That’s written in response to an opinion issued last week by his office saying that schools cannot be licensed as their own private security firms so they can arm and train selected staff members. I don’t like the opinion. I think schools should be able to decide whether or not to do that, but McDaniel’s job isn’t to decide good policy from bad. It’s to interpret the ...

Service is as service doesThe notion of service surfaces repeatedly in Scripture. For instance, Jesus observed: “No one can serve two masters. You cannot serve both God and Money” (Matt. 6:24). The term translated Money embraces possessions of whatever sort. While possessions can serve a legitimate purpose, they should not be made an end in themselves. It was likely with this in mind that Andrew Carnegie, who advocated the accumulation of wealth, cautioned that a perso...

Another round of newspaper cuts — and a toastIn 1993, during my second day on the job at The Plain Dealer, I noticed a dime taped to the top of a computer I shared with veteran reporter Lou Mio. “What’s that about?” I said, pointing to the coin. Lou smiled and, with a sweep of his hand, gestured to all the other dimes taped on computers throughout the newsroom’s metro department. An editor on the city desk, Lou explained, had said, loudly, two years earlier, “Reporters are a dime a dozen...

School district may go ahead with plan to arm staffAfter initially showing some common sense in reaction to an adverse attorney general’s opinion, Clarksville school officials are apparently going to challenge an interpretation that says the district can’t be licensed as a private security company to train and arm its employees. You’d think the school officials would have sought legal counsel before they embarked on a novel plan to put guns in the hands of a couple dozen teachers and staff mem...

A good month for Mike RossThere’s no way around it. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross had an excellent July. The former 4th District congressman is now sitting with a campaign chest full of cash and a clear path to the nomination after his primary rival dropped out of the race. That is remarkable considering only a few months ago Ross was not even a candidate. As 2012 closed, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel was considered the favorite in the Democrats’ plan...

Commissioner talks zoning issueRussellville has an important special election on August 13th to vote on whether to allow a Walmart Neighborhood Market to be built at the corner of West Main Street and South Vancouver Avenue. I serve as one of nine commissioners on the Russellville Planning Commission. The commission studied and deliberated this particular application for months. I thought it might be helpful to the voters to provide some background information on this issue...

Forgotten warThis July 27th marked 60 years since the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement, essentially ending the Korean War. It is sometimes referred to as “The Forgotten War,” as it was often overshadowed by the more immediate memories of Vietnam, Desert Storm and the 50th anniversary commemorations of World War II. With four-million casualties, however, those who served in Korea certainly have not forgotten their shared experiences on the battlefi...

UACCM offers something for everyoneMORRILTON — The University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton offers technical, career and transfer degrees as well as adult education and workforce education. The campus draws approximately 2,300 credit students each semester and 1,000 non-credit students each year through workforce training, community education, and adult education programs. Serving six counties in Central Arkansas, UACCM is a vibrant commuter campus with ample parki...

Hunting for signatures, one at a timeIt’s an overcast Saturday morning, and Frank Gilbert, 63, and Elizabeth Russell, 29, are spending it at Little Rock’s River Market. Unlike many of the rest of the market-goers, however, they’re looking for names, not bargains. The two are members of the Libertarian Party, and they along with other volunteers and professional canvassers are collecting 10,000 signatures to get their party on the ballot for 2014 elections. Under Arkansas law, the...

The Weekly Post: A trip to the beachWASHINGTON D.C. — I must apologize for my two-week absence from this column. Work, other writing projects and weekend forays into the city have ensured to keep me busy. This will be my second-to-last column for the summer, and I’m going to spend it talking about the most prosaic, mundane topic one can think of — the weather. While my friends and family complain about the heat in Arkansas — a quick look at the weather said Friday’s high was 96 ...

Wings and thingsThe announcement Russellville was getting a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant earlier this year meant two things were certain about my upcoming football season. I would get the opportunity to watch every Green Bay Packers game, and many deep-fried chicken parts would be devoured while doing so. I was told construction would be complete in November, but I can’t, for the life of me, remember where I heard this. As the summer marches closer to fall, ...

A terrible thing to wastePaul’s letter to Titus details the function of church leaders who are called to develop additional leaders. Titus 1:10-16 points out some dangers that a church leader should look out for, “For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, 11 who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain. 12 One of themselves, ...

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Pastor Steve EllisonThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

‘Abide with me’Henry Lyte, a Scottish preacher, was afflicted with the dreaded disease of tuberculosis. Shortly before his death in 1847 he wrote a poem entitled, “Abide With Me” and set it to the music of a popular song. He died just three weeks after its completion. The hymn is a prayer for God to remain present through the storms, trials and changes of life as well as through the transition of death. The opening line alludes to Luke 24:29, “Abide with us:...

Look out — here comes the new complex“Good fences make good neighbors,” goes the old adage. That civilizing thought refers to such friendly structures as the beautiful rock walls of New England, elegant split rails in the South, iconic whitewashed pickets of the Midwest and even privacy fences in neighborhoods all across our country. But the neighborly adage definitely did not contemplate the 700-mile, 20-foot-high, drone-patrolled, electronically monitored fence of steel and raz...

Death of DanielHere is a true statement I would like to invite you to ponder with me for a little while today. All the people who believe in abortion have already been born. The subject or issue of abortion is one of the most emotionally charged in the history of our nation. It still rages today but there may be a better way, and while you may already know what it is, I will confirm it before I am done. If you read my column on a regular basis, you know that...

An impression of the ‘Forgotten War’As a veteran and member of various veterans’ organizations, I feel compelled to write a few lines about the impact the “Forgotten War” had on me. That’s what the “Korean War” has been labeled. One might ask how the event got labeled that way. I mean how could a military action involving our nation in which some 36,516 gave their lives over a three year period of time just be overlooked? As vivid as if it was just a few months or years ago, I c...

Sen. Bookout’s entertaining campaignCampaign reports filed last year by state Sen. Paul Bookout, D-Jonesboro, have triggered an ethics complaint that could land him in some hot water. The problem is not only what is in his reports, but also what is missing. In March, Jonesboro conservative activist Bob Hester filed an ethics complaint against Bookout for his failure to itemize expenses on his report. State law requires candidates to itemize expenses of $100 or greater. But Booko...

Death Row inmates stall punishmentOne of the great ironies of American politics is that most people who are against abortion are also for capital punishment of convicted killers. And most people who are against capital punishment are also for abortion rights, or rather pro-choice, to be politically correct. You’d think that people who believe absolutely in the sanctity of life would also feel compelled to protect the lives of even our worst human beings. And vice versa, that p...

Blood shortage needs donors“It’s scary how low we are.” That’s what I remember the American Red Cross worker saying to me last Saturday as he attached a Band-Aid to my arm after I had given blood. He was talking about his organization’s emergency supply. The Red Cross serves 3,000 hospitals nationwide. To meet that demand, it must collect 17,000 pints of blood every day – one pint per donor. That becomes harder during the summer months, according to Laurie Nehring, comm...

Moving on, driving forwardI have found it is rare many people have the chance to see their reflection from both sides of opposing mirrors. I am one of the fortunate ones allowed such an experience. When I was a young man, as my mother and other family members told me many times in the past, I have always been attracted to all things automotive. Everyone who knows this part of me swears I’ve been able to identify most cars on the road with stunning accuracy. To tell the...